June 2021

Teysha Technologies, manufacturers of sustainable bioplastic AggiePol^®, has created an infographic to show how its next generation of bioplastic can replace existing petroleum-based plastics. With CO2 emissions to grow by more than 2.75 billion tonnes by 2050, the burden that manufacturing plastics has on our environment is starting to be of concern.

The Centre for International Environmental Law estimates that only one per cent of the 359 million tonnes of plastic produced each year are biodegradable. This is despite the media’s efforts to portray the ugly truth of beaches strewn with bags and bottles, and ocean life trapped by plastic rings from an eight-pack of lager. Less considered, however, is the impact of petroleum-based plastic production on the environment.

Oil and gas industries use fossil fuels such as ethylene and propylene, which release toxic gas and do not degrade. To tackle this, fuel industries created poly(butylene succinate), a biodegradable ‘eco alternative’. However, its status as being eco-friendly is debatable because of its petrochemical precursors.

“The trouble with bioplastic is that it traditionally lacks the strength, toughness and longevity of conventional plastic” explains Dr Ashlee Jahnke. “Alternatives derived from corn or sugarcane quickly fell out of favour because they are between 20 and 50 per cent more costly to produce, and only degrade under certain conditions.”

“Often, bioplastics still need industrial composting conditions, oxygen and microorganisms to biodegrade efficiently. In an ideal world this would not be an issue, but the UK doesn’t have the infrastructure in place to process bioplastics in a cost-effective way”

Some of the world’s most renown food and beverage companies started experimenting with plant-based bottles, using bioethanol from renewable sources in place of fossil fuels, which, on the surface seemed a great idea. However, it sparked ethical concerns about diverting food, such as corn, crop to make plastic alternatives. Researchers also unearthed that the material degraded in the same way as traditional plastics and therefore not a sustainable alternative.

Low oil prices and a lack of political support globally has slowed progress in the bioplastics industry. Now more than ever, the world faces increased financial pressures because of the pandemic and attentions have been temporarily turned away from the global plastics crisis. Teysha see this as an opportunity for improvement.

AggiePol^® uses natural-product based building blocks to create bio-polymers which react and behave similarly to conventional plastics. Bio-polymers often have higher chemical diversity than typical hydrocarbons, meaning their physical, mechanical and chemical properties can be finely tuned. This allows developers to manipulate degradation rates, while boasting strength, toughness and durability.

As a second-generation bioplastic, AggiePol^® is capable of degradation, and can regenerate the natural-product building blocks. Not only could it replace ethylene-derived non-biodegradable plastics, but it could replace existing petroleum-based polycarbonates. Plenty of applications can benefit from this – from food packaging, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals to medical-grade implantation and textiles.

“People and the planet are only as healthy as the ecosystems we depend on.” This is a statement to encourage ecosystem restoration published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). But ecosystem restoration is more than a pathway to achieving climate goals. Here Duncan Clark, head of operations at biopolymer researcher Teysha Technologies, explains how we can take steps in restoring ecosystems by terminating the use of Earth’s biggest polluter, plastic.

The WWF describes plastic pollution as one of the most visible symptoms of the environmental crisis, damaging natural habitats and threatening wildlife. In fact, the Geneva Environment Network estimates that the cumulative production of plastic surpassed eight billion metric tons worldwide in 2020 and is expected to increase in the coming decades.

The images we see in the media of litter-strewn beaches and marine life tangled up in single-use plastic bags are powerful conversation starters, but they don’t represent the entire problem. Plastic is harmful from the point of manufacture and even with more robust recycling policies, the plastic crisis will persist into the future if we can’t source a sustainable alternative.

To understand the extent of this issue, we must dig deeper into how plastic is produced.

Plastic’s ugly truths

Most plastic production requires a core ingredient: crude oil dug deep from the Earth’s crust. The seismic vibrations caused by oil extraction is enough to disrupt some habitats. But when you factor in the threat of oil spills and the infrastructure needed to transport resources in-land, thousands of species have been displaced to accommodate demand for crude oil.
It may not seem much, but five per cent of all global crude oil extracted is used for the manufacturing of plastics. This actually equates to approximately 35m barrels per year.

Plastic production is also extremely energy intensive, consuming 2000 times the amount of energy it takes to treat and distribute tap water. It also generates harmful pollutants that damage the Earth’s atmosphere and leach into our land and water systems.

The carbon emissions from producing plastic are threatening thousands of species who are struggling to adapt to rapidly changing environmental temperatures. National Public Radio (NPR) estimates that carbon emissions from plastic production could amount to 56 gigatons between now and 2050.

Finally, the products made from plastic pose an even bigger threat to our ecosystems. One single-use plastic bottle, whose contents may take minutes to consume, will persist in the environment anywhere from 450 years to several thousand years.

The result is that there are now some 80,000 tonnes of plastic — the equivalent weight of 500 jumbo jets — in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch alone, according to The Ocean Clean Up. Once broken down into microplastic particles, these are consumed by marine life, only to work their way back through the food chain and end up on our plates.

The evidence is clear that plastic is a cause for concern, but it’s convenience cannot be understated. The good news is that there is now a viable alternative that means we can feasibly outlaw traditional plastic for good.

Solving the polymer puzzle

Teysha Technologies has developed a polymer platform using sustainable feedstocks to generate Earth-friendly polycarbonate materials. This plug-and-play system incorporates natural monomers and co-monomers, rather than hydrocarbons from crude oil, formulated from starches or agricultural waste.

A major benefit of this is that the resulting material’s physical, mechanical and chemical properties can be tuned to fit specific applications. Even the polycarbonate’s degradation rates are tuneable. Food packaging, for example, is often disposed of after a single use, so it could be tuned to break down quicker in an environment with sufficient moisture.

A common problem with traditional bioplastics, despite being composed of ‘greener’ materials, is that they still need industrial catalysts and the right microbial conditions to degrade. Most countries simply don’t have the infrastructure to facilitate this.

By considering the impact of each stage in the lifecycle of plastic on ecosystems, we can start to transition from petrochemical-based plastics towards truly natural, harmless materials.

There are approximately 960,000 Ford Fiesta’s registered on Britain’s roads. Each of these cars requires 100 gallons or more of crude oil to manufacture the plastic in the car’s interior, bodywork, crumple zones and engine components. What’s more, this plastic will still be around long after the car has reached the end of its useful lifetime. Here Duncan Clark, head of operations at biopolymer research company Teysha Technologies, explains how automakers can overcome this problem by switching to tuneable bioplastics.

With many carmakers switching to EV production, significant gains are being made in making the automotive industry more sustainable. However, the 120 kilograms of plastic going into manufacturing every car will outlive the vehicle by about 380 years. This poses the question: is the investment in the car worth the environmental cost of producing this much plastic?

Plastics are used by carmakers because they are lightweight, versatile and durable. For example, the plastics in a Ford Fiesta will be used to improve passenger and driver comfort and enhance the safety of the vehicle. Plastic also reduces vehicle weight, improving the overall fuel economy. But this does not counteract the resource-intensive process of manufacturing plastic, and carmakers should now be investigating sustainable polymer alternatives.

Polyester in car interiors

Plastics Europe estimates that twelve to fifteen per cent of a car’s weight is plastic. Some plastic components are built to last the lifetime of the car, including the textiles, dashboard, interior trim and exterior bodywork such as the bumpers. Others are designed to be replaced, including the floor mats and windscreen wipers. Mats, for example, are composed of polyester fibres and will be replaced after a few years of wear-and-tear.

However, polyester production is highly polluting and uses approximately 330 million barrels of oil per year. Common Objective also predicts that 14.2 kilograms of carbon dioxide is produced per kilogram of polyester. If up to 25 kilograms of polyester is used in a Ford Fiesta’s interior, that equates to 355 kilograms of carbon dioxide produced in making one car’s textiles.

It is understandable why polyester has become a popular choice for car interiors. Seatbelts, for example, are also composed of petroleum-derived fibres and help to protect passengers from serious injury. Safety is unquestionably important, so efforts to find sustainable bioplastics, which meet safety standards, should be a priority.

Plastic bodywork

Plastic composites, like polypropylene, are used in car crumple zones because they absorb more energy on impact than metals. This means that the driver of a modern car with a plastic crumple zone is much more likely to survive a Road Traffic Accident (RTA), than an older car with metal crumple zones.

However, a recent study in Nature Communications estimates that 100,000 metric tonnes of microplastics make their way from crumple zones and vehicle exteriors into our water systems every year. This may be from general wear-and-tear, illegal scrapping and damage left over by RTAs. To put this into perspective, this is the equivalent weight of all 960,000 British-registered Ford Fiesta’s surviving in our ecosystems for hundreds of years.

Global carmakers are now working on solutions to alleviate plastic pollution, such as manufacturing vehicles using recycled plastics. But will these efforts go far enough, or is it time to stop producing plastic altogether?

Why recycling doesn’t go far enough

Global automotive companies have been experimenting with recycled plastic in their car designs for many years now. Nissan, for example, manufactures the LEAF electric vehicle, which is made from 25 per cent recycled materials. 60 per cent of the LEAF’s interior is derived from PET plastic bottles, making it a definite step in the right direction for the automotive industry.

To further this effort, in 2020, students at the Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands, proved that manufacturing a vehicle from 100 per cent recycled plastic and household waste was possible. Plastic bottles and broken household appliances were used to flesh out the car body, windows and interior, most of these fished out of the ocean or dug up from landfill.

Solutions like the ones employed by Nissan and the Eindhoven students are certainly commendable. But recycling infrastructure in many countries is simply inadequate and would not be able generate the materials needed for large-scale car manufacturing. Efforts should now be focussed on improving recycling practices in tandem with halting plastic production altogether. This is achievable by switching to using durable, versatile and plastic-like biopolymers.

A biopolymer future

Biodegradable biopolymers, such as those developed by Teysha Technologies, are showing promise as plastic alternatives. This technology may eventually help steer the industry away from non-renewable, petroleum-based plastics.

The past five years have seen Teysha achieve a landmark breakthrough in its second-generation biopolymer. Made from natural feedstocks, such as starches and agricultural waste, this versatile polymer can be physically, mechanically and chemically tuned to meet the needs of the automotive industry.

Crucially, these biopolymers overcome many of the challenges of existing biopolymers, like the fact that their hydrolytic breakdown can be controlled — and unlike conventional biopolymers, they can be made to biodegrade in nature, and without the use of industrial catalysts.

All plastic elements of a car could make use of biodegradable biopolymers, from carpets to crumples zones. If every automotive manufacturer were to make this transition, the resource-intensive refining of plastics would soon become obsolete.